You can get great results from doing one good chest exercise and one tricep exercise, like the bench press and the tricep pushdown. For optimal muscle growth, however, you probably need to do one or two more exercises for each of the muscles in order to work all of your muscle fibers.
Within a single week (microcycle) of training, we recommend between 2 and 5 different chest exercises. For example, if you train chest 3x a week, you can do a heavy barbell bench on one day, a lighter barbell bench on the next day, and a flye version on the last day for 2 total exercises in the week.
Some experts believe that training the chest and triceps twice a week is sufficient. However, most people will see greater results by training this muscle group three times a week with about an hour between every two chest workouts. There are many different opinions on how often to train the chest muscles.
How many tricep exercises should I do? You should do 3-5 tricep exercises per training session, making sure to choose exercises that hit all 3 heads of the triceps, put the long head of the triceps on stretch, and hit overlapping strength curves.
Yes, performing 3 to 5 exercises per workout, 5 times a week can be sufficient for hypertrophy, provided that several key factors are considered: Volume: Aim for a total of 10 to 20 sets per muscle group per week. This can be achieved by varying the number of sets and reps for each exercise.
Compound exercises are the cornerstone of strength training, offering unmatched efficiency by targeting multiple muscle groups in a single movement. While there are many compound exercises, the big 5 lifts stand out as the most essential for building functional strength.
5×5 means you do five sets of five reps with the same weight. These are “straight sets” or “sets across”. On the Squat, Bench Press, Overhead Press and Barbell Row you do 5×5. Say you Squat 5×5 225lb (total weight including the bar, because you lift it).
Yes, you need to do more than 1 bicep exercise on arm day in order to achieve muscle activation in the biceps. A few sets of conventional dumbbell curls aren't enough for training biceps. Your arm routines should include 3-5 exercises for biceps.
Anywhere from 1-4 exercises to train the chest is ideal. To optimize training the chest muscles without overdoing it, you want to pick about 2 to 3 chest moves as a sweet spot. Picking the right moves will help you hit multiple areas of your chest. This way, you don't have to do as much and use up valuable energy.
That's because the triceps — which make up about two-thirds of your overall arm — are primary movers in a multitude of other compound, multi-joint exercises, including the bench press and overhead press.
Within a training session, we recommend including between 1 and 3 different triceps exercises, but no more than that in most cases, as doing more than 3 triceps movements in one session is likely just a needless burning of potential exercise variations you can save for later mesocycles.
You should perform 1-4 chest exercises per workout, with the most optimal range being 2-3 different chest exercises in a single training session. Why? For most lifters, performing any more than 3-4 various movements can result in diminished returns, excessive “trash” volume, and suboptimal quality volume.
This pairing can be the path to your upper body success—and this workout will lead the way. WHEN YOU DO a heavyweight bench press—arguably the premier upper body-building exercise for lifters of all stripes—there are two muscles working in tandem to power the bar up to the top of each rep: the chest and triceps.
The best exercises for chest muscle growth are the standard Bench Press for the middle pecs, the Incline Bench Press for the upper chest muscles and the Weighted Dip using heavy barbell plates for the lower chest.
We recommend doing 4 to 6 chest exercises per week for intermediate lifters who are prioritizing hypertrophy, though some – including advanced lifters- may require more exercises and/or more volume.
Number of Exercises By Type of Workout
Strength Training By Muscle Group: If you're following a strength training workout split that focuses on a specific muscle group each day (e.g., legs, back, chest), Krupa recommends doing three or four exercises per muscle group.
However, if you incorporate these three steps into your 'chest days' or your chest exercises, you will start seeing your chest become noticeably wider and more defined in just 8-12 weeks.
For most people, training a target muscle group per session with 2-4 different exercises. This could end up being 4-12 different exercises per muscle group per week, depending on how many times per week you train the target muscle group.
Aim for two to three triceps exercises per workout with 3 to 4 sets each. Example: 1-2 compound movements and 1-2 isolation exercises. For advanced lifters, incorporating a higher number of exercises can help target the triceps from various angles.
Stronglifts 5×5 is high volume for your shoulders, triceps and legs. It's medium volume for your chest, back and biceps.
The 80/20 rule is super simple: you focus on eating healthy foods 80% of the time and allow yourself to indulge in not-so-healthy foods for the remaining 20%. It's all about striking a balance—getting your body the nutrition it needs while still enjoying your favorite treats without feeling guilty.
Downside #4: Risk of Overtraining
The 5x5 method can be intense, especially when lifting heavy weights in compound movements. Overtraining is a potential risk, as pushing your body too hard and not allowing enough time for recovery can lead to injuries and burnout.